276 SPHEGID^. 



of the apical two sef^ments black ; the apical margin narrowly of 

 the 2nd segment and broadly of the 3rd and 4th fulvous brown ; 

 the antennae and legs pale reddish ; wings hyaline, with a large 

 fuscous subapical spot on the fore wing. 



Var. The black on the thorax and abdomen replaced by red, and 

 the fulvous brown on the 2nd-4th abdominal segments replaced by 

 bright yellow ; some specimens with the red colouring have the 

 bases of the 2nd-4th abdominal segments black, as in the typical 

 specimens. 



c? similar, but the clypeus and face up to the base of the 

 antennae entirely yellow. 



Hab. Barrackpore ; Calcutta ; Madras. 5 . Length 7-9 ; exj). 

 16-18 mm. 



Genus STIZUS. 



Sphex, pt., Fabr. Syst. Ent. p. 346 (1775). 



Crabro, pt., Fahr. Syst. Ent. p. 373 (1775). 



Larra, pt., Fahr. Ent. Syst. ii, p. 220 (1793). 



Stizus, Latr. Hist. Nat. iii, p. 344 (1802) ; Handl. Sitzungsh. Akad. 



Wiss. Wien, ci, 1892, p. 26. 

 Larra, Smith, Cat. iv, p. 337 (1856). 



Type, S. ruficornis, Fabr. 

 Range. Both hemispheres. 



Head subglobose, generally not so wide as the thorax ; front 

 slightly concave ; ocelli placed in a triangle on the vertex ; eyes 

 large, ovate, their inner orbits parallel, often slightly convergent 

 towards the clypeus ; clypeus transverse, broader than long ; labrum 

 exserted, but not so markedly as in Bemhex, its anterior margin 

 rounded ; mandibles not dentate within nor incised on their outer 

 margin ; antennae more or less filiform, in the male the apical joints 

 often abnormal, spined, curved, &c. ; thorax stout ; the pronotum 

 transverse ; the median segment of varying form, generally short, 

 truncate posteriorly, sometimes concavo-truncate with the sides 



compressed and produced ; legs 

 f^ moderately long, the anterior tarsi 



in the female ciliated with long 

 spines ; the coxae massive, the inter- 

 mediate tibiae with two apical spines; 

 the intermediate and posterior tibiae 

 and tarsi moderately spinose, claws 

 simple : wings of moderate length ; 

 fore wing with one radial and three 

 Yvg.QO.— Stizus rufescens, $. \. cubital cells, the radial cell short; 



the 1st cubital cell, measured on 

 the cubital nervure, equal to the 2nd and 3rd united, the 2nd 

 cubital cell strongly constricted towards the radial, sometimes 

 petiolate, receiving both recurrent nervures ; 3rd cubital cell 

 oblique, wider on the cubital than on the radial nervure, the 

 outer transverse cubital nervure curved inwards towards the 



